Pioneers of Tonality
Before “electronic music” was a recognized genre, the Barrons were building it in their living room. Working outside the traditional Hollywood music union, they created a sonic landscape that defied classification.
Creative Philosophy
The Barrons did not “compose” in the traditional sense. They built cybernetic circuits based on the theories of Norbert Wiener. These circuits were designed to behave like biological nervous systems—they were born, they lived, and they eventually “died” (burned out) during the recording process.
Iconic Film Credit
Because the Barrons did not use a conductor or an orchestra, the American Federation of Musicians refused to credit their work as “music” resulting in the iconic film credit: “Electronic Tonalities by Louis and Bebe Barron.” Another reason for that credit was not belong to the Musicians Union. That meant they could not be considered for an Academy Award in either the “soundtrack” or “sound effects” categories.
Sound Effects
The two were originally slated to contribute about twenty minutes of sound effects and electronic pieces, as Harry Partch was also due to contribute music. When Partch left the project, the Barrons took over the entire soundtrack.[43]
Getting Hired
The Barrons got hired by MGM producer Dore Schary after approaching Schary at a nightclub and and later going to California in CA so he could listen to a demo of their electronic music. After Schary listened to the demo and consulting with Jonny Green, the music department head and Nicholas Nayfack, the producer, he agreed to hire them.[44]
The Caveat
The Barrons had a condition, however: that they be allowed to stay in NY and record from there. The studio agreed, and the movie became MGM’s first production to have its score produced outside of the studio lot at California.[45]
The Theremin
While the theremin had been used on the soundtracks of Spellbound (1945) and The Day the Earth Stood Still (1951), the Barrons are credited with creating the first completely electronic film score, preceding the development of analog synthesizers by Robert Moog and Don Buchla in the early 1960s.
Electronic Circuits
Using ideas and procedures from the book Cybernetics: Or Control and Communication in the Animal and the Machine by Norbert Wiener (1948) the mathematician and electrical engineer, Louis Barron constructed his own electronic circuits that he used to generate the score’s “bleeps, blurps, whirs, whines, throbs, hums, and screeches”, making heavy use of ring modulation.
Sound Manipulation
After recording the basic sounds, the Barrons further manipulated the sounds with reverberation, delay, filters, and tape manipulations (as employed in the piece Williams Mix, which they had assisted John Cage in realizing at their Greenwich Village studio).
Soundtrack Release
The Barrons finally released their soundtrack in 1976 as an LP album for the film’s twentieth anniversary; it was on their own Planet Records label (later changed to Small Planet Records and distributed by GNP Crescendo Records). A decade later, in 1986, their soundtrack was released on a music CD for the film’s thirtieth anniversary.
Sountrack Tribute
A tribute to the film’s soundtrack was performed live in concert by Jack Dangers, and is available on disc one of the album Forbidden Planet Explored.
Summary
Louis and Bebe Barron created the Forbidden Planet score by designing unstable, self-destructing vacuum tube circuits based on cybernetic principles. Bebe Barron then extensively manipulated the recorded sounds through tape looping, speed alterations, and manual synchronization to produce the film’s signature electronic, rhythmic score. Detailed insights can be found at SoundWorks Collection and Wikipedia.